CROCODILIANS, LIZAUDS, AND SNAKE8. 287 



witli two black crescents, widening below; the posterior doable its own 

 width from the groin, from which sometimes springs a third. The 

 interstices and borders lighter than the gronnd color on the sides 

 above; below and on the belly blue. Chin mottled with blue and Avhite. 

 Sides anterior to the crescent spotted with whitish. Thighs with a 

 plumbeous stripe behind. 



In this species the scales of the entire back are rather larger than 

 those on the sides for a width of at least twenty scales. The number 

 in a line from occiput to above anus is at least one hundred and sixty. 

 The hind foot is rather more than two-fifths the head and body; the 

 free portion of hind toe one and one-half times the head. There are 

 seven upper labials on each side. The tail is very mnch depressed to 

 the tip. 



The upper parts of this species are of an olivaceous or reddish gray. 

 The back Avith the series of nine or ten small, dusky rounded blotches, 

 sometimes very obsolete; continued on the upper surface of the tail as 

 a single series of uudulating or somewhat W-shai^ed bars. All these 

 marks are suffused behind with a lighter tint than the ground color. 

 In the posterior half of each side are three parallel black crescents, 

 extending from back to belly, the convexity posterior; the extremities of 

 opposite ones separated above and below by ten or twelve scales; of 

 these the posterior starts from the groin and is (£uite indistinct; the two 

 others are widest inferiorly (where they are truncate), and taper almost 

 to a point on the back. The borders and intervals of these crescents 

 are generally yellowish, lighter than the ground color. Anterior to the 

 crescents the sides are conspicuously and quite uniformly marked with 

 rounded, yellowish spots, almost in a network of the ground color; 

 they sometimes have a darker areola. The under parts are yellowish, 

 suffused with greenish on the sides of belly (especially about the black 

 marks) and sometimes across it. The head has sometimes a greenish 

 or light i)lumbeous tinge; the under part of the head is faintly blue, 

 varied with yellowish. The under surface of tlie tail shows from three 

 to eight conspicuous, transverse, large bluish or black spots in contin- 

 uation of rings encircling the tail, which are quite indistinct above and 

 laterally. The posterior surface of the thigh shows a broad, longitudi- 

 nal plumbeous strii)e, and below it a yellowish one, cutting off a second 

 fainter lead-colored one, sometimes wanting. 



The rings around the tail are more indistinct laterally than above. 



The female has a series of plumbeous blotches along the sides, nearly 

 as broad as high, subcresceutic, with the tips truncate and close. 

 There are two oval spots on the side of the belly, and in its white 

 ground, just below two of the lateral blotches mentioned. 



Sometimes there is a trace of an additional crescent (or even two) 

 anteriiU' to the others. This, however, is only ftiiutly indicated; is not 

 continuous, and does not extend on the belly. 



